Here you have a lot to do, a lot to see, much more than a river, much more than a valley‚Ä¶

You are in the most visited part of the Nature Reserve, in a passage that connects two different and equally interesting places. It is the natural place of contact between the north ‚Äď the Sierra de Segura mountains ‚Äď and the south ‚Äď the Sierra de Cazorla mountains ‚Äď; an area where the Nature Reserve‚Äôs first tourist services were set up. Here you will find places to lie back and relax, places to visit and places for walks. You come to many interesting hidden-away spots if you go slowly, at the pace of the Guadalquivir river, just strolling along.

An important amount of the Nature Reserve‚Äôs water flows into this valley. Dozens of rivers and mountain streams spill the water they bring from the summits, including: the Aguasmulas and the Borosa rivers, two magnificent mountain courses you can follow, not without effort, along the tracks and trails leading up to Las Banderillas (1993 m), one of the best summits in Andalusia for mountaineering. If you prefer shorter walks, the valleys also afford such singular alternatives as the Cerrada de El√≠as canyon, in the Borosa river.

On your first visit, the scenery around Tranco reservoir will delight you if there has been enough rain during the year. On autumn nights, an awesome concert can be heard from the road and the surrounding paths and trails: it is the call of the male red deer during the rutting season. One of the tracks starts at Los Llanos de Arance and ends at the Cortijo de las √Ānimas farmhouse.

A clearer understanding of the past and recent history of these mountains can be gained by a visit to the Tranco reservoir, built in the 1950‚Äôs to control the flow of the great Andalusian river, and to the historical site of Hornos, a place inhabited by humans since prehistoric times, on the way to the heart of the mountains.